I'm Okay
by Daughter of the Damned
Summary: AU: A young Bra witnesses the atrocities commited against her mother by none other then her father


_Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ obviously. The lyrics are from Christina Aguilera's cd Stripped and the song is called "I'm Okay"___

_Warning: Foul Language, Spousal and child abuse, and death___

_Notes: This is an AU fiction piece. I don't believe that Vegeta would ever lay a hand on Bulma, but this is AU so please no flames._   
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"I'm Okay"   


_Once upon a time there was a girl_   
_in her early years she had to learn_   
_how to grow up living in a war that she called home___

"Damn you woman!! I told you to fix the damn gravity machine over an hour ago!" Vegeta yelled at the working Bulma. She looked up in annoyance. "What does it look like I'm doing dummy?!" she screamed back, staring at the irate prince who was quickly losing his temper. "It looks like you're sitting on your fat ass you cow!!" he countered, flexing his fists over and over.   
A six year Bra sat next to the slightly opened door, her face buried in her knees. She hated it when her parents fought. 

_Never knew just where to turn for shelter from the storm_   
_hurt me to see the pain across my mothers' face_   
_every time my fathers' fist would put her in her place_

"Are you sure you wanna go there you tail-less freak?!!!!" Bulma screeched, getting up suddenly to face her red faced husband. In a flash, so quick no human eye could detect it, Vegeta's fist connected with her eye, sending her sprawling across the spotless tile. An expression of pure shock and pain were written plainly across her face as she clutched her damaged eye.   
Bra's eye allowed a single, crystalized tear slowly roll down her little cheek. She knew her father had gone too far. Without another thought, she took off for the safety of her room.__

_Hearing all the yelling, I would cry up in my room_   
_hoping it would be over soon_

floor up, she continued to hear the cries of her mother, the pain and anguish so plainly heard in her heartfelt sobs. 'No more!!!' the child screamed in her head. Suddenly, there was a quick burst of steps coming towards her room and she cowered into her pillow, letting it get soaked with hot tears, as her door flew open and there stood her mother, a horrible, sick looking bruise blossoming over her left eye, swelling it shut. Without a word, Bulma grabbed her daughter and sped downstairs to the outside. "We're going over to Aunt Chichi's." were the only words spoken and a capsule car burst to life and they flew off into the distance. 

_Bruises fade father, but the pain remains the same_   
_I still remember how you kept me so afraid_   
_strength is my mother for all the love she gave_

Two weeks later, Bra sat in the kitchen of her home while her mother stood at the stove, making some instant food for them. Bulma still had the remnants of a bruise on her eye, but she insisted that she was fine. The sudden slam of the back door scared them both, but they stayed in place. Daddy was home.   
Bulma straitened her back and pretended like she didn't hear him come in. "Woman, what are you doing?" he asked, trying to act as if he didn't see the bruise on Bulma's face. Keeping her eyes focused on the food, she pointed to the pan. "Bra, go upstairs and play with your dolls or whatever the hell you do in your room." her father commanded. Bulma looked at her and nodded, signaling it was ok to leave her with him. 

_Every morning that I'd wake, I'd look back on yesterday_   
_and I'm OK_

She ended up taking a nap, but a small tugging of her mind alerted her that something wasn't right. Sleepily, she rubbed her eyes, but they went wide with alertness when a sudden crash echoed up to her. Without hesitation, she swiftly ran to the stairs to see what was happening. "You want to make me look bad is that it?!" screamed her father at Bulma, who was gripping the counter top tightly. "You don't need my help to do that!!" she yelled back, gathering courage. Bra noticed a broken plate at her mother's feet and guessed her father had thrown it to scare her mother. The screaming faded out and she saw her parent's faces, twisted and ugly from anger. She sadly walked back up to her room, trying her hardest to block out the voices of bitterness.   
  
_I often wonder why I've carried all this guilt_   
_when it's you that help me put up all these walls I've built___

The next morning, Bulma entered her daughters' room and gently awoke her. "Bra, it's time to go to school." she spoke softly, shaking her. "I don't wanna..." came the small protest. Bulma smiled and whipped off the comforter. "Sorry, but you need to go. Up and at 'em." Bra yawed and flexed her back, looking over to her mom, but horrified to see another bruise on her mother's face, but it was now on her cheek. Wordlessly, she stumbled into her bathroom to wash her face. Guilt wracked her for not stopping the fight her parents had, and preventing the ugly mark on her mother's face. 

_shadows stir at night through a crack in the door_   
_the echo of a broken child screaming please no more_   
_daddy don't you understand the damage that you have done_   
_For you it just a memory, but for me it still lives on_

Later that night, Bra sat alone in her room, the only light coming from the crack under her door. Down the hall, shouts floated throughout the house from her parent's bedroom. "I don't know why I ever allowed you into my house!!!!!!!" screamed Bulma, stomping her foot and crying. "Yeah, well I don't know why I actually lower myself to FUCK with a HUMAN!!!!!!!! And not just any human, but a LOUD MOUTHED, BITCHY WHORE!!!!" her father came back, tossing Bulma to the ground.   
In her room, Bra shut her eyes closed and bit her lip to keep from screaming. Her tiny fists balled up in hate and scrubbed the hot tears rolling down her cherub cheek. "No More!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" she cried, punching her pillow. Heavy footsteps vibrated in the hall, leading to her room and Vegeta threw open the door, red faced and violent looking. "What are you screaming for brat?!" he yelled, startling the little girl. Never in her life had her father ever yelled at her or called her a brat. Now, he had done both at the same exact time. She tried to suck up her tears and shook her head. "Nothing." she whispered, her throat tight with emotion. She could hear her mother crying in her room and she turned to hear it. "There's nothing wrong with your mother so just go to sleep!" he shouted, slamming the door and blasting off through the hallway window to some unknown destination. 

_Bruises fade father, but the pain remains the same_   
_I still remember how you kept me so afraid_   
_strength is my mother for all the love she gave_   
_every morning that I'd pray, I'd look back on yesterday_   
_And I'm OK___

It was three months before he returned, three peaceful, happy months. Bulma's face had finally gone back to it's normal coloring and has happily playing tea with her daughter when the front door blew open and there stood the mighty prince of sayjins in all his glory. An icy chill captured the room and held it still in it's rapture as Vegeta walked wordlessly to the gravity room. Bra saw her mother let loose a breath she didn't even know she was holding and she gave a little smile to her. "Why don't you clean up here and go up to your room for a while?" her mother placed the cup of tea down and walked after her husband. Bra quickly left with tea set and threw them in her room in a rush to get downstairs to see the exchange between mother and father. 

_It's not so easy to forget_   
_all the marks you left along her neck_   
_when I was thrown against cold stairs_   
_and every day afraid to come home in fear of what I might see next___

"So he graces us with his presence. What are you doing back here Vegeta?" Bulma asked, unconsciously gripping a counter top. Vegeta smirked while sizing her up. "Woman, this is my house and I'll come here whenever I fucking well feel like it." he challenged. A spark lit up in her eye as she prepared to counter. "This isn't your house you ass and I want you gone now. Keep away from me and Bra." she whispered harshly, staring him squar in the eye. A look a fury passed over Vegeta's face as he came closer to her. "Why should I? Bra is my daughter too. Unless you're trying to keep me from finding out about something....or someone." he breathed her scent in and spat it out like a foul odor. "So that's who it is huh? You think that you can get away from me that easily huh? I can smell him all over you, penetrating you with his stink. Like he could ever satisfy you the way I can." He forced himself on her lips, a cold and hate-filled embrace of death. Bulma struggled to get out from under him, but it was useless. He was just so much stronger.... "Who are you talking about?! I haven't been with anybody!" she cried out when he moved his lip to bite her neck. He ripped himself from her in disgust. "Don't act fucking stupid! You know who I'm talking about! I smell his filthy scent on you!" he yelled, grabbing her neck roughly. "No! With who?! " she screamed. Vegeta chocked her, shook her, and threw her against the wall. "That low class prick Kakkorott you treacherous whore!!!!" he yelled, picking her up by her neck and shaking her like a rag doll.   
Silent until now, Bra screamed in horror and ran to kick her father in in shin. She knew it would have no effect, but it would distract him from her mommy. "Stop it Daddy! You'll kill her!" she cried, sobbing at his feet. "Shut up brat!" he roared, kicking her into the stairs. "B-ra..." Bulma cried weakly from her husbands' grasp. Bra lay deathly still as Bulma's heart stopped.   


_Bruises fade father, but the pain remains the same_   
_I still remember how you kept me so afraid_   
_strength is my mother for all the love she gave_   
_every morning that I'd wake, I'd look back on yesterday_   
_And I'm OK___

"Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for though art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me......" the priest went on as Bra stood next to her brother Trunks and their grandparents. Inside a beautiful white casket lay her mother, beautiful even in death because the mortician applied makeup to hide all the grotesque marks along her face and neck. The lowering of the casket brought her back to her senses. "We now consecrate our sister Bulma Briefs to the ground....." Loud sobs were heard all over, from Chichi, Videl, Pan, and Marron. Bra stood stoically still as the dirt began to be tossed over her mother. "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust....." Trunks gently tugged Bra's hand to move her away from the scene. As she turned, a figure in the far off distance looked at her before taking off into the sun. Daddy. 

_I'm OK_   
  
  
  



End file.
